1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a mattress-type massage apparatus for massaging a user lying on his/her back.
2. Description of the Related Art
In general, this type of massage apparatus has a base plate, and a carrier is provided on the upper surface of the base plate such that the carrier can run on the base plate. The base plate and carrier are covered with a cloth cover. Massage rollers are rotatably supported on the carrier. The carrier is reciprocally moved along the longitudinal axis of the base plate by a driving mechanism. Thereby, almost the entire length of the back of the user lying on the cover is massaged by the massage rollers.
The mattress-type massage apparatus having the above structure is disclosed, for example, in U.S. Pat. No. 4,656,998. Specifically, a pair of carriers are provided on the base plate at a predetermined interval along the longitudinal axis of the base plate. The carriers are reciprocally driven, and the back of the user is massaged from the parts corresponding to the massage rollers.
If the running speed of the massage rollers is increased, the user feels pain. Thus, in order to give comfortable massage effects on the user, the running speed of the massage rollers cannot be increased excessively.
However, if the running speed of the massage rollers is decreased to such a level that the user does not feel pain, a long time is required until the massage rollers which are reciprocally moved are returned to the initial position. For example, if the massage rollers start to run from the back of the user, a long time is required until the massage rollers move to the waist, buttocks and legs and return to the back. Since the cycle of massaging the same parts of the user increases, the massage effects on the user decrease.